Religious Freedom Day 2014 is Almost Here
Nearing the end of his life Jefferson, who considered the Virginia Statute one of his three most important achievements (the others being drafting the Declaration of Independence and founding the University of Virginia) wanted to get in the last word on interpretation. While he knew that the Virginia Statute was as revolutionary as the era in which it was written, he also knew that interpretations of convenience come easily to people with opposing views. The Statute was clear in stating that no one can be compelled to attend any religious institution or to underwrite it with taxes; that individuals are free to believe as they will and that this "shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities." But Jefferson wanted to be even more specific about what was meant by all that. So in his autobiography, Jefferson warily dotted the i's and cross the t's of history, lest anyone think there could be any exceptions. The statute, he wrote, contained "within the mantle of its protection, the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and Mohametan, the Hindoo and Infidel of every denomination." The idea that Muslims (then-called Mohametans) would be equal in the eyes of the law with Christians of any flavor -- and anyone else -- has even greater meaning today than it did in the heady revolutionary days of 1777. Indeed, President Obama held closely to the spirit and intention of Jefferson's reminder when he declared in his 2013 Religious Freedom Day Proclamation:
"...our Founders looked to the Statute as a model when they enshrined the principle of religious liberty in the Bill of Rights. Religious Freedom Day thus affords all of us a great opportunity, for those who are religious and non-religious, for example, to agree on such a powerful thing as our common civil and constitutional rights, and to recognize the threat to those rights that we share. We face similar challenges as the Religious Right seeks to redefine history for political advantage. That is smart politics because history is powerful. But too often, I think, we allow the Religious Right to go unchallenged, or inadequately challenged in these things. But the good news is that history is on our side, and its not too late.
Religious Freedom Day 2014 is Almost Here | 7 comments (7 topical, 0 hidden)
Religious Freedom Day 2014 is Almost Here | 7 comments (7 topical, 0 hidden)
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